Recommendation 12

It is not clear whether diversion schemes disproportionately benefit White children compared with their BAME counterparts, nonetheless, the figures on first- time entrants to the system are concerning. Without centrally collected data on diversion rates, we cannot gain an accurate picture on who is being diverted and who is not, and it is therefore difficult to understand whether diversion schemes are being disproportionately used. In adopting our previous recommendation that the Ministry of Justice and Youth Justice Board work together to collect data on informal diversion schemes, the two bodies should include demographic information in that data.